Flights of fantasy and contemplations of a curious woman

Ageless Beauty and Confidence

When I opened the New York times last week and discovered this photo, I was stunned!

82 year old Dame Judi Dench, sans make-up and Photoshop. She looks every bit of her 82 years.

Beautiful. Regal. Confident.

I have been looking at the photo all week. I do not have the confidence to publish unretouched photos of myself. I have some pretty good Photoshop skills and put them to use when photographing my female friends and my selfies.

I want to minimize the bags under the eyes, laugh lines, worry lines, squint lines, age spots, double chin, and scars.I don’t want to look my 69 years.

Why? I AM content with my age. Rarely do I wish to be younger. (I do wish I had appreciated being younger at the time.)

I have earned every facial line and age spot, and the scars are a reminder of moving too fast. (My body no longer responds as it use to.) However, I am learning to thrive on my curiosity and the realization that my brain is more active and growing faster than it did 20 years ago. I intend to keep it growing!

In a society that glamorizes the young, we must constantly remind ourselves that the outward beauty of youth is fleeting. Look into those blue eyes of Dame Judi Dench. There is a depth of knowledge that only comes through experience and curiosity and the determination to live each year to it’s fullest.

How do we develop the confidence to appreciate our inner development and become more content with our outward appearance? How do we learn to accept that the person in the mirror is the complement to the inner person?

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5 thoughts on “Ageless Beauty and Confidence”

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Suraiya Mohd Ali

October 2, 2017

I am 65 and definitely into ageless beauty . I am not much concerned about been seen without makeup but a tinge of lipstick would be helpful to boost my confidence level! Basic skin care is still important for older women anyway. And I know I still good for my age with or without make-up as long as I am appropriately well-dressed.

I’m still working on going without makeup. I did it for a few months but slipped rightly back to my old ways. I take a terrible picture with or without makeup…. so keep that photoshop program on your computer

Hi Tammie, I welcome your vulnerability. It is refreshing!
When the opinion of others to our physical appearance ceases to matter to us, it becomes easier to look beyond the face in the mirror to the spirit behind it! I am reminded that the Namaste (Sanskrit) greeting I love using, which is beautifully translated as “The spirit within me, greets the spirit within you!”, is what I choose to use to remind the person I am speaking to about authentically connecting on a deeper level than just physically. You can choose to become more courageously confident by making a simple choice to just be that. Lots on our “to do” lists can become easier if we strengthen our spirits and the “to be” list!
Filomena
p.s. please visit http://www.bemorecourageouslyconfident.com for info on the course I have been developing for the past few years or go directly to the Eventbrite page for details about the free teleclass http://bit.ly/BMCC-MeanderingMinds